Handheld device case with activatable shield to block wireless signals

ABSTRACT

A technique for selectively configuring a case of a handheld device to shield an antenna from receiving or transmitting wireless signals is disclosed. The technique includes moving a blocking element on the case between a first position and a second position. The blocking element is a physical structure that is rotatable, slidable, or removable to switch between the first position and the second position. In response to moving the blocking element to the first position, the blocking element blocks wireless signals received or transmitted by the antenna of the handheld device. In response to moving the blocking element to the second position, wireless signals can be received or transmitted through the case by the antenna.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.17/660,989, filed Apr. 27, 2022, which claims the benefit of U.S.Provisional Patent Application No. 63/180,572, titled “Faraday PhoneCase,” and filed Apr. 27, 2021. The aforementioned applications areincorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure generally relates to controlling wireless signalsreceived or transmitted by handheld devices.

BACKGROUND

Mobile computing devices such as smartphones, tablets, and smart watchesare increasingly ubiquitous. These devices have the ability to place andreceive voice/video calls and create and receive text messages, makepayments, have personal digital assistants, an event calendar, a mediaplayer, video games, GPS navigation, digital cameras, etc. As wirelesscommunications and computer technologies continue to improve, this trendwill only accelerate.

However, the increased use and capability of mobile devices has alsoraised new issues surrounding personal privacy. Mobile devices generatea large amount of data regarding their users, which can be used topredict behavior, target advertisements, etc. In addition, maliciousactors can track a user's location, steal passwords and credit cardinformation, and remotely activate a device's webcam. But because of howessential mobile devices are in everyday life, a user cannot simply stopusing them. Thus, a convenient way to protect against the unconsentedcollection of user data is needed.

SUMMARY

The disclosed embodiments relate to a handheld device case that blockswireless signals. The case can be switched between two configurations,such as by a sliding element built into the case. In the firstconfiguration, the case blocks wireless signals to and from the mobiledevice by forming a Faraday cage around a portion of the phonecorresponding to the phone's antenna. When the case is shifted into thesecond configuration, the Faraday cage is severed, and the case does notsubstantially block wireless signals, allowing the mobile device tocommunicate wirelessly. By switching configurations of the case, a usercan choose to block and unblock signals to their mobile device withoutpowering their phone off and on. In addition, a mobile device will oftenemit wireless signals even when powered “off,” as long as it still hasbattery power. By forming a Faraday cage, the case can block thesesignals as well. Other aspects of the technique will be apparent fromthe accompanying Figures and Detailed Description.

This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in asimplified form that is further described below in the DetailedDescription. This Summary is not intended to identify key features oressential features of the described subject matter, nor is it intendedto be used to limit the scope of the embodied subject matter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a case for a handheld device including a switch toactivate a shield that blocks wireless signals.

FIG. 2 illustrates a system on a case for a handheld device including aswitch to activate a shield that blocks wireless signals.

FIG. 3 illustrates a method for selectively configuring a case of ahandheld device to shield an antenna from receiving or transmittingwireless signals.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an example computing device inwhich aspects of the disclosed technology can be embodied.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The embodiments set forth below represent the necessary information toenable those skilled in the art to practice the embodiments andillustrate the best mode of practicing these embodiments. Upon readingthe following description in light of the accompanying figures, thoseskilled in the art will understand the concepts of the disclosure andwill recognize applications of these concepts that are not particularlyaddressed herein. It should be understood that these concepts andapplications fall within the scope of the disclosure and theaccompanying claims.

The purpose of the terminology used here is only for describingembodiments and is not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure.Where context permits, words using the singular or plural form may alsoinclude the plural or singular form, respectively.

As used herein, unless specifically stated otherwise, terms such as“processing,” “computing,” “calculating,” “determining,” “displaying,”“generating” or the like, refer to actions and processes of a computeror similar electronic computing device that manipulates and transformsdata represented as physical (electronic) quantities within thecomputer's memory or registers into other data similarly represented asphysical quantities within the computer's memory, registers, or othersuch storage medium, transmission, or display devices.

As used herein, the terms “connected,” “coupled,” or variants thereof,refer to any connection or coupling, either direct or indirect, betweentwo or more elements. The coupling or connection between the elementscan be physical, logical, or a combination thereof.

As used herein, the term “substantially” can refer to a majority or nearan entirety. For example, “substantially blocking” wireless signals ofan antenna can indicate that more wireless signals are blocked frombeing received or transmitted compared to the total amount of wirelesssignals that could be received or transmitted. In another example,“substantially blocking” wireless signals could mean that all or nearlyall wireless signals are blocked to/from an antenna.

Configurable Case for Blocking Wireless Signals

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a case 100 for a handheld device (e.g.,smartphone). The case 100 can correspond to the enclosure or exterior ofthe handheld device (e.g., part of the handheld device) or a separatestructure that is used to cover the handheld device. That is, the caseis secured over the exterior of the handheld device. The case 100 caninclude a protective housing that holds a smartphone or other handhelddevice and protects the device against physical damage. The protectivehousing can be substantially made of plastic, rubber, silicone, leather,etc. The protective housing can enclose one or more sides of thesmartphone (e.g., 4 or 5 sides). As shown, the case 100 having theprotective housing covers at least the backside of the device. A portionfor a rear camera 104 of the device can be transparent, or theprotective housing can include an opening at a portion that exposes therear camera.

The case 100 includes a switch 102 that can toggle between differentstates to block or unblock passage of wireless signals to/from anantenna of the wireless device through the case 100. A first state ofthe switch 102 activates the signal blocking function and a second statedeactivates the signal blocking function of the case 100. In anotherexample, the switch 102 is slidable to control an amount of signalsbeing blocked to/from an antenna. For example, positioning the switch inan intermediary position between the first and second state canattenuate but not block signal propagation to/from the antenna.

The switch 102 controls a blocking element, which is a physicalstructure incorporated in the case 100. In the illustrated example, aportion of the switch 102 includes the blocking element 106. Theblocking element 106 can physically cover one or more antennas of ahandheld device disposed in the case 100 to shield wireless signalstransmitted from and received by antennas of the handheld device. Theblocking element 106 can comprise one or more layers of conductive wiremesh, as shown in FIG. 1 . In some embodiments, the blocking element 106can also be or include a sheet of conductive material, such as a solidor perforated sheet. The blocking element 106 can be comprised ofaluminum, copper, silver, or any suitable electrical conductor or othermaterial that can shield wireless signals from propagating through theblocking element 106. The blocking element 106 can be configured toshield against a wireless signal depending on the frequency, power, andwave form of that signal. For example, a thicker blocking portion canattenuate stronger signals than a thinner conductor. For a mesh, asmaller mesh size can shield higher frequency signals compared to alarger mesh size.

In the illustrated example, the switch 102 includes a sliding element108 coupled to the blocking element 106. The sliding element 108 can bemoved between a first position and a second position, as shown in FIG. 1. When the sliding element 108 is in the first position, the blockingelement 106 blocks wireless signals, and when the sliding element 108 isin the second position, the antenna of the handheld device can receiveor transmit wireless signals through the portion of the case 100 that isotherwise covered by the blocking element 106. For example, the blockingelement 106 can be integrated into the sliding element 108 and cover theantenna of a wireless mobile device when the sliding element 108 is inthe first position, while the blocking element 106 does not cover theantenna when the sliding element 108 is in the second position. Inanother example, the blocking element 106 can comprise a stationaryfirst portion and a movable second portion coupled to the slidingelement 108. The first and second portions can be coupled when thesliding element 108 is in the first position, forming a Faraday shield.When the sliding element 108 is moved to the second position, theFaraday shield can be severed, allowing wireless signals to travelthrough the case 100. For example, the first and second portions canoverlap to form a wire mesh. In some embodiments, the sliding element108 can be replaced with a folding element, a removable element, arotatable element, or other mechanism that can move and/or sever theFaraday cage. For example, a rotatable element can rotate in onedirection to cover an antenna and rotate back in the other direction touncover the antenna.

In some embodiments, the case 100 can include multiple blockingportions, switches, or sliding elements for multiple antennas of ahandheld device. For example, a smartphone can include anywhere fromfour to thirteen different antennas. There are typically at least fourradios (transmitters and/or receivers) in smartphones includingcellular, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and GPS radios. The antennas can havedifferent shapes and sizes, and can be distributed in various locationsof a smartphone. Thus, embodiments include blocking elements for eachantenna or multiple antennas. The blocking elements can be collectivelyor independently controlled to block wireless signals for selected orall antennas of radios on the wireless device.

FIG. 2 illustrates a configurable blocking system for a case 200 of ahandheld device. As shown, the case 200 optionally includes a switch 202to activate/deactivate one or more shields that block wireless signalsto/from one or more antennas of a handheld device. The case 200 includesa system of blocking elements 204-A through 204-D (collectively referredto herein as “blocking elements 204” and individually as “blockingelement 204”) that cover at least one or more portions of the antenna(s)of a handheld device held by the case 200. Each of the blocking elements204 can shield wireless signals transmitted to/from one or more antennasof the handheld device. The blocking elements 204 can comprise a similaror different structure or composition of the blocking element 106described with respect to FIG. 1 .

The switch 202 can be actuated (e.g., clicked, rotated, tapped) toconfigure the blocking elements 204 to block or allow wireless signalpropagation to/from the antennas of the handheld device. The switch 202is illustrated as a hardware component such as a mechanical switch.However, embodiments of a switch include software controls running onthe handheld device that can be actuated to configure the blockingelements 204. The blocking elements 204 can be physical componentsembedded anywhere in-between an antenna and an exterior environmentwhere wireless signals propagate. The blocking elements 204 arepreferably at least partially visible to a user looking at the case 200,so that the user can visually verify when a blocking function isengaged. Otherwise, a user would have to trust that wireless signals arebeing blocked, which is undesirable because the handheld device could behacked and erroneously indicate that a blocking function is engaged. Inone example, a user of the handheld device can interact through aninterface with a software program or module running on the smartphone toselectively activate or deactivate all or some of the blocking elements204.

A user can thus configure each blocking element 204, which can be usedto set levels for blocking wireless signals or block wireless signalsfor different radios of the handheld device (e.g., Bluetooth, cellular,Wi-Fi). For example, the user can select to block wireless signals forBluetooth communications but not for cellular communications. In anotherexample, activating/deactivating certain blocking elements 204 block afrequency, power, and wave form of certain wireless signals. Forexample, the blocking element 204-A can be actuated to block a firstfrequency and the blocking element 204-B can be actuated to block asecond frequency different from the first frequency. The blockingelements 204 can thus be electrically (e.g., battery powered) ormechanically configured (e.g., physically moved) to activate ordeactivate signal blocking functions.

FIG. 3 illustrates a method 300 for selectively configuring a case of ahandheld device to shield an antenna from receiving or transmittingwireless signals. The case includes a housing configured to physicallyprotect the handheld device, movable elements configured to move todifferent positions and blocking elements coupled to the movableelements. Each blocking element is configured to block or unblockpropagation of wireless signals to/from an antenna of the handhelddevice. The blocking element is disposed in the case between the antennaand an exterior environment. Further, any blocking element is at leastpartially visible from the exterior environment. In one example, thecase is integral to the handheld device to form an exterior surface ofthe handheld device. In another example, the case is removable from thehandheld device and physically protects the handheld device when thehandheld device is disposed in the case.

At 302, a switch is toggled between two states. Toggling the switch to afirst state can cause a blocking element to move to a first position.Toggling the switch to a second state can cause the blocking element tomove to a second position. In one example, the switch can controlmultiple blocking elements to simultaneously switch between blocking andunblocking wireless signals. In another example, multiple switches eachinclude a blocking element configured to switch between blocking andunblocking wireless signals. In another example, multiple blockingelements are each independently configurable through a software programto independently switch between states to block and unblock wirelesssignals to/from the antenna.

At 304, the blocking element on the case of the handheld device is movedto a first position or a second position. The blocking element is aphysical structure that is rotatable, slidable, or removable between thefirst position and the second position. In one example, the movableelement is movable in response to actuation of a graphic controldisplayed on a display screen of the handheld device. In anotherexample, the blocking element is movable across a range of positions toblock a corresponding range of frequencies, power, or waveforms ofwireless signals.

At 306, in response to moving the blocking element to a first position,propagation of wireless signals received or transmitted by the antennathrough the case is blocked. At 308, in response to moving the blockingelement to the second position, propagation of wireless signals receivedor transmitted by the antenna through the case is unblocked. Forexample, a movable element at the first position covers at least aportion of the antenna to block a radio frequency (RF) radiation to/fromthe antenna, and the movable element at the second position uncovers theat least the portion of the antenna to unblock RF radiation to/from theantenna.

In another example, an additional blocking element is moved betweendifferent positions to block or unblock propagation signals through thecase of the handheld device to the antenna. The different blockingelements can be collectively or independently operable. In one example,the different antennas are coupled to different radio devices includingcellular, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, or GPS radio devices. As such, a user canselectively block different types of communications signals.

Handheld Device

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an example handheld device inwhich aspects of the disclosed technology can be embodied. For example,the handheld device 400 can be placed in the case 100 of FIG. 1 . Thehandheld device 400 may include generic components and/or componentsspecifically designed to carry out the disclosed technology. Thehandheld device 400 may be a standalone device or part of a distributedsystem that spans networks, locations, machines, or combinationsthereof. For example, components of the handheld device 400 may beincluded in or coupled to a system-on-chip (SOC), a single-boardcomputer (SBC) system, a desktop or laptop computer, a kiosk, amainframe, a mesh of computer systems, or combinations thereof.

In some embodiments, the handheld device 400 can operate as a serverdevice or a client device in a client-server network environment, or asa peer machine in a peer-to-peer system. In some embodiments, thehandheld device 400 may perform one or more steps of the disclosedembodiments in real-time, near real-time, offline, by batch processing,or combinations thereof.

The handheld device 400 includes a processing subsystem 402 thatincludes one or more processors 404 (e.g., Central Processing Units(CPUs), Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), and/or FieldProgrammable Gate Arrays (FPGAs)), a memory controller 406, memory 408that can store software 410, and a peripherals interface 412. The memory408 may include volatile memory (e.g., random-access memory (RAM))and/or non-volatile memory (e.g., read-only memory (ROM)). The memory408 can be local, remote, or distributed. The handheld device 400 canalso include a clock subsystem 414 that controls a timer for use in someembodiments. The components of the handheld device 400 areinterconnected over a bus (not shown) operable to transfer data betweenhardware components.

The peripherals interface 412 is coupled to one or more external ports416, which can connect to an external power source, for example. Theperipherals interface 412 is also coupled to an I/O subsystem 418. Othercomponents coupled to the peripherals interface 412 includecommunications circuitry 420, audio circuitry 422 for a speaker 424 anda microphone 426, an accelerometer 428, a GPS receiver 430 (or GlobalNavigation Satellite System (GLONASS) or other global navigation systemreceiver), and other sensors (not shown). The GPS receiver 430 isoperable to receive signals concerning the geographic location of thehandheld device 400. The accelerometer 428 can be operable to obtaininformation concerning the orientation (e.g., portrait or landscape) ofhandheld device 400.

The I/O subsystem 418 includes a display controller 432 operative tocontrol a touch-sensitive display system 434, which further includes thetouch-sensitive display of the handheld device 400. The I/O subsystem418 also includes an optical sensor(s) controller 436 for one or moreoptical sensors 438 of the handheld device 400. The I/O subsystem 418includes other components (not shown) to control physical buttons such a“home” button.

The communications circuitry 420 can configure the antenna 440 of thehandheld device. In some embodiments, the antenna 440 is structurallyintegrated with the handheld device 400 (e.g., embedded in the housingor display screen) or coupled to the handheld device 400 through theexternal ports 416. The communications circuitry 420 can convertelectrical signals to/from electromagnetic signals that are communicatedby the antenna 440 to networks 442 or other devices. For example, thecommunications circuitry 420 can include radio frequency (RF) circuitrythat processes RF signals communicated by the antenna 440.

The communications circuitry 420 can include circuitry for performingwell-known functions such as an RF transceiver, one or more amplifiers,a tuner, oscillators, a digital signal processor, a CODEC chipset, asubscriber identity module (SIM card or eSIM), and so forth. Thecommunications circuitry 420 may communicate wirelessly via the antennaelements with the networks 14 (e.g., the Internet, an intranet and/or awireless network, such as a cellular network, a wireless local areanetwork (LAN) and/or a metropolitan area network (MAN)) or otherdevices.

The software 410 can include an operating system (OS) software program,application software programs, and/or modules such as a communicationsmodule, a GPS module, and the like. For example, the GPS module canestimate the location of the handheld device 400 based on the GPSsignals received by the GPS receiver 430. The GPS module can providethis information to components of the handheld device 400 for use invarious applications (e.g., to provide location-based access to serviceproviders).

A software program, when referred to as “implemented in acomputer-readable storage medium,” includes computer-readableinstructions stored in the memory (e.g., memory 408). A processor (e.g.,processor 404) is “configured to execute a software program” when atleast one value associated with the software program is stored in aregister that is readable by the processor. In some embodiments,routines executed to implement the disclosed embodiments may beimplemented as part of OS software (e.g., MICROSOFT WINDOWS and LINUX)or a specific software application, component, program, object, module,or sequence of instructions referred to as “computer programs.”

Computer programs typically comprise one or more instructions set atvarious times in various memory devices of a computing device (e.g.,handheld device 400), which, when read and executed by at least oneprocessor (e.g., processor 404), will cause the handheld device 400 toexecute functions involving the disclosed embodiments. In someembodiments, a carrier containing the aforementioned computer programproduct is provided. The carrier is one of an electronic signal, anoptical signal, a radio signal, or a non-transitory computer-readablestorage medium (e.g., the memory 408).

Operation of a memory device (e.g., memory 38), such as a change instate from a binary one (1) to a binary zero (0) (or vice versa) maycomprise a visually perceptible physical change or transformation. Thetransformation may comprise a physical transformation of an article to adifferent state or thing. For example, a change in state may involveaccumulation and storage of charge or a release of stored charge.Likewise, a change of state may comprise a physical change ortransformation in magnetic orientation or a physical change ortransformation in molecular structure, such as a change from crystallineto amorphous or vice versa.

The handheld device 400 can be any type of electronic device that cancommunicate wirelessly with a network node and/or with another handhelddevice in a cellular, computer, and/or mobile communications system.Examples of a handheld device include smartphones (e.g., APPLE IPHONE,SAMSUNG GALAXY, NOKIA LUMINA), tablet computers (e.g., APPLE IPAD,SAMSUNG NOTE, AMAZON FIRE, MICROSOFT SURFACE), wireless devices capableof machine-to-machine (M2M) communication, wearable electronic devices,and any other handheld device that is capable of accessing the networks442.

The handheld device 400 may store and transmit (e.g., internally and/orwith other electronic devices over a network) code (composed of softwareinstructions) and data using machine-readable media, such asnon-transitory machine-readable media (e.g., machine-readable storagemedia such as magnetic disks, optical disks, read only memory (ROM),flash memory devices, and phase change memory) and transitorymachine-readable transmission media (e.g., electrical, optical,acoustical, or other forms of propagated signals, such as carrier wavesor infrared signals).

The handheld device 400 can include hardware such as one or moreprocessors coupled to one or more other components, such asnon-transitory machine-readable media to store code and/or data, userinput/output (I/O) devices (e.g., a keyboard, a touchscreen, and/or adisplay), and network connections (e.g., an antenna) to transmit codeand/or data using propagating signals. The coupling of the processor(s)and other components is typically through one or more busses and bridges(also referred to as bus controllers). Thus, a non-transitorymachine-readable medium of a given electronic device typically storesinstructions for execution on processor(s) of that electronic device.One or more parts of an embodiment of the present disclosure may beimplemented using different combinations of software, firmware, and/orhardware.

The network(s) 442 may include any combination of private, public,wired, or wireless systems such as a cellular telephone network, acomputer network, the Internet, and the like. Any data communicated overthe network(s) 442 may be encrypted or unencrypted at various locationsor along different portions of the networks. Examples of wirelesssystems include Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), HighSpeed Packet Access (HSPA), WiMax, Wi-Fi, Wireless Local Area Network(WLAN), and Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), GSM EnhancedData Rates for Global Evolution (EDGE) Radio Access Network (GERAN), andother systems that may also benefit from exploiting the scope of thisdisclosure.

The handheld device 400 may use a variety of communications standards,protocols, number of frequency bands, frequencies, and technologies,including but not limited to Global System for Mobile Communications(GSM), Enhanced Data GSM Environment (EDGE), high-speed downlink packetaccess (HSDPA), wideband code division multiple access (W-CDMA), codedivision multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA),3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) related standards, BLUETOOTH,Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi) (e.g., IEEE 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g,802.11n, 802.11ad, 802.11ay), voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP),Wi-MAX, a protocol for e-mail (e.g., Internet message access protocol(IMAP) and/or post office protocol (POP)), instant messaging (e.g.,extensible messaging and presence protocol (XMPP), Session InitiationProtocol for Instant Messaging and Presence Leveraging Extensions(SIMPLE), Instant Messaging and Presence Service (IMPS)), and/or ShortMessage Service (SMS), or any other suitable communication protocol,including communication protocols not yet developed.

Aspects of the disclosed embodiments may be described in terms ofalgorithms and symbolic representations of operations on data bitsstored in memory. These algorithmic descriptions and symbolicrepresentations generally include a sequence of operations leading to adesired result. The operations require physical manipulations ofphysical quantities. Usually, though not necessarily, these quantitiestake the form of electric or magnetic signals that are capable of beingstored, transferred, combined, compared, and otherwise manipulated.Customarily, and for convenience, these signals are referred to as bits,values, elements, symbols, characters, terms, numbers, or the like.These and similar terms are associated with physical quantities and aremerely convenient labels applied to these quantities.

The handheld device 400 may include other components that are not shownnor further discussed herein for the sake of brevity. One havingordinary skill in the art will understand any hardware and software thatis included but not shown in FIG. 2 . While embodiments have beendescribed in the context of fully functioning handheld devices, thoseskilled in the art will appreciate that the various embodiments arecapable of being distributed as a program product in a variety of formsand that the disclosure applies equally, regardless of the particulartype of machine or computer-readable media used to actually effect theembodiments.

1. A case of a handheld device, the case comprising: a movable elementconfigured to move between a first position and a second position; and ablocking element coupled to the movable element and configured to: blockpropagation of a first protocol of wireless signal and allow propagationof a second protocol of wireless signal at an antenna of the handhelddevice when the movable element is in the first position; and allowpropagation of the first protocol of wireless signal and blockpropagation of the second protocol of wireless signal at the antennawhen the movable element is in the second position.
 2. The case of claim1, wherein the first protocol of wireless signal corresponds to a firstrange of wireless signal frequency, power, or waveform, and wherein thesecond protocol of wireless signal corresponds to a second range ofwireless signal frequency, power, or waveform.
 3. The case of claim 1,wherein the case is integrated in the handheld device and forms asurface of the handheld device.
 4. The case of claim 1, wherein the caseis configured to: be removable from the handheld device; and physicallyprotect the handheld device when the handheld device is disposed in thecase.
 5. The case of claim 1, wherein the movable element is rotatable,slidable, or removable between the first position and the secondposition.
 6. The case of claim 1, comprising: a switch configured totoggle between the first position and the second position, wherein theblocking element is integrated into the switch.
 7. The case of claim 1,comprising: a switch configured to toggle between a first state and asecond state, wherein the blocking element is distinct from the switch,wherein toggling the switch to the first state causes the blockingelement to move to the first position, and wherein toggling the switchto the second state causes the blocking element to move to the secondposition.
 8. The case of claim 1, wherein the blocking element isconfigured to be activated in response to an interaction by a user atthe handheld device.
 9. The case of claim 1, wherein the blockingelement is configured to be deactivated in response to an interaction bya user at the handheld device.
 10. The case of claim 1, wherein themovable element is movable in response to actuation of a graphic controldisplayed on a display screen of the handheld device.
 11. A casecomprising: a plurality of actuatable elements, each configured to movebetween a first and a second position; and multiple blocking elementscoupled to the plurality of actuatable elements, wherein propagation ofa first protocol of wireless signal at a first corresponding antenna isallowed when a first actuatable element of the plurality of actuatableelements is configured in a second state, and wherein propagation of asecond protocol of wireless signal at a second corresponding antenna isallowed when a second actuatable element of the plurality of actuatableelements is configured in a second state.
 12. The case of claim 11,wherein the first protocol of wireless signal corresponds to a firstrange of wireless signal frequency, power, or waveform and wherein thesecond protocol of wireless signal corresponds to a second range ofwireless signal frequency, power, or waveform.
 13. The case of claim 11,comprising: multiple switches, each including a blocking elementconfigured to allow propagation of the first and second protocol ofwireless signal to or from corresponding antennas.
 14. The case of claim11, comprising: multiple switches, each including a blocking elementconfigured to block propagation of the first and second protocol ofwireless signal to or from corresponding antennas.
 15. The case of claim11, wherein each of the multiple blocking elements is independentlyconfigurable using a software program to switch between states to allowpropagation of the first and second protocol of wireless signal atcorresponding antennas.
 16. The case of claim 11, wherein each of themultiple blocking elements is independently configurable using asoftware program to switch between states to block propagation of thefirst and second protocol of wireless signal at corresponding antennas.17. The case of claim 11, wherein the multiple blocking elements aredisposed in the case between corresponding antennas and an environmentexterior to the case, and wherein the multiple blocking elements are atleast partially visible to the environment.
 18. A method for configuringa case of a handheld device to block wireless signals at an antenna, themethod comprising: moving a blocking element on the case between a firstand a second position, wherein the blocking element is a physicalstructure that is rotatable, slidable, or removable between the firstand second positions; in response to moving the blocking element to thefirst position, allowing propagation of a first protocol of wirelesssignal at the antenna; and in response to moving the blocking element tothe second position, allowing propagation of a second protocol ofwireless signal at the antenna.
 19. The method of claim 18, wherein thefirst protocol of wireless signal corresponds to a first range ofwireless signal frequency, power, or waveform, and wherein the secondprotocol of wireless signal corresponds to a second range of wirelesssignal frequency, power, or waveform.
 20. The method of claim 18,comprising: prior to blocking or unblocking propagation of the first andsecond protocol of wireless signal through the case: toggling a switchbetween a first state and a second state, wherein toggling the switch tothe first state causes the blocking element to move to the firstposition, and wherein toggling the switch to the second state causes theblocking element to move to the second position. 21-23. (canceled)